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Ask the Author: Stuart Gibbs

“Ask me a question.” Stuart Gibbs

Answered Questions (2088)

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In the Spy School series, does being on dangerous and stressful missions affect Ben's mental well-being? Do you think it's appropriate to portray psychological scars in this series?
Stuart Gibbs I have considered showing Ben or his friends experiencing some sort of PTSD but felt that wouldn't really fit with the vibe of the series.
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Where did you get the idea for Funland in spy camp?
Stuart Gibbs That is based on several different miniature golf course / arcades. Many of them tend to have a similar look.
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Do you play any games (video, mobile, pc, etc)?
Stuart Gibbs I prefer board games. Like Carcassonne or Jamaica or Anomia.
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Do you support any sports team? Possibly the lakers or dodgers?
Stuart Gibbs I'm originally from Philadelphia. So you can work out my favorite teams.
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In SSS, when Erica was given her undercover identity along with the other kids, was her identity meant to reflect her reputation as a popular girl/queen bee, just like the ones in normal school? For that matter, are the books meant to allude to her status as being such?
Stuart Gibbs You are asking about Spy Ski School? That identity is merely to have Erica pretend to be someone markedly different than her actual self. It is in no way a statement on popularity or status.
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About Spy School, what is Ben's middle name? My head thinks it's Ronald, which is his father's name, but I'm not sure.
Stuart Gibbs Ben's middle name has not been revealed yet. So it remains classified.
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Hello Mr. Gibbs, I have been a fan of your spy school series since elementary school. Now that I am in my second year of high school, I find myself revisiting your works with some of my favorites being Spy Ski School and Spy School at Sea. Now that I am older, I wanted to ask: what lessons would you like your older readers to take away from this series?
Stuart Gibbs Primarily, I try to write books where intelligence and knowledge are the keys to my heroes' success. I want my readers to recognize that those are the keys to success in life, too. I'd like my readers to recognize my heroes' commitment to do the right thing at all costs.
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My 9yo and myself just finished our 24th book by you. We love them, especially Spy School and FunJungle, but I have noticed that you often portray characters' weight in a shameful and judgmental way. I cringe every time it happens and wonder if you would consider revisiting how you write about weight?
Stuart Gibbs I have revised how I write about weight. I have listened to readers like you and changed that significantly since the first books that I wrote.
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In Charlie Thorne 2 there was a reference about a list of great scientists. I was wondering if you might put Mary Curie as the scientist for book five of the series as it corresponds to the chemistry background in curse of Cleopatra?
Stuart Gibbs Marie Curie is definitely a scientist that I have thought a lot about.
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Hello, I have been a fan of your work since I was eight years old; now, I am entering my freshman year of college (time flies). I have always aspired to become an author, but I am not sure how difficult it is to break through in the industry. Is it harder than winning the lottery, as people proclaim?
Stuart Gibbs It is probably not harder than winning the lottery -- and unlike the lottery, it is not just luck. Everyone I know who has become an author has worked really hard at it. If you work hard and develop your talents, you have a much better chance of making it as a writer.

Maybe this will help:

https://stuartgibbs.com/writing-advice/
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I LOVE you spy school series! I'm a preteen author, do you have any advice?
Stuart Gibbs Check out this age on my website:

https://stuartgibbs.com/writing-advice/
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A few questions about the love square from Spy School: 1. It's said that Warren was jealous of Ben because of Zoe. Did Warren ever know that Ben had a crush on Erica, or did it just not matter to him? Would he have taken a step back and realized Ben wasn't after Zoe, or did he just not care? (Sorry if that sounds a little confusing.)
Stuart Gibbs I think everyone knew Ben had a crush on Erica, and that did not keep Warren from being jealous of Zoe's feelings for Ben.
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2. The entire school is said to have known Warren had a crush on Zoe, as well as Ben for Erica. Did the school also know that Zoe had a crush on Ben?
Stuart Gibbs Zoe's crush was not such common knowledge.
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Hi Stuart. Will you be turning the Funjungle series into a graphic novel series?
Stuart Gibbs There is no plan for that at the moment but I hope that will change some day.
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How many books are going to be in Spy School and FunJungle?
Stuart Gibbs I don't know how many books will be in either series.
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Hi Mr. Gibbs, This one is from my friend Hello My Name, is Lorenzo and I was wondering what the best way to contact you?
Stuart Gibbs https://stuartgibbs.com/contact-info/
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Where did you get your inspiration for your books?
Stuart Gibbs You can find the answers to your questions here:

https://stuartgibbs.com/about/
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Is there going to be a sequel with monkeys as the escapees? Because that would be cool and it would relate to Teddy's mom's job.
Stuart Gibbs Ape Escape is coming next spring and has a gorilla at the heart of the story. That definitely relates to Teddy's mother's job.
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I am a big fan and I asked you a question a couple months ago. However, now I have another one. A: Can you tell us the name of spy school 14? B: How many books are you gonna publish definitely? Thank You
Stuart Gibbs I do not know the name of SS14 yet and will not for several months, I do not give my books titles until I have finished writing them,

How many books am I going to publish in my life? I don't think any author could give you a definitive answer to that.
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Where was your favorite place to go when writing the Fun jungle series?
Stuart Gibbs I had a wonderful time visiting Rwanda, Tanzania and Zanzibar to research Ape Escape.
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